This paper considers the kinds of interventions that elementary school principals make for the purpose of improving practice in their schools. Findings are derived from the Principal-Teacher Interaction Study being conducted at the University of Texas at Austin, which has categorized interventions hierarchically at the following levels: policy,…

This study, initiated by the Scarborough (Ontario) Board of Education, examines principals' perceptions of their role in curriculum implementation, the difficulties inherent in this role and the support systems available to assist principals, and the leadership component of the principals' role in curriculum implementation. Interviews, based on a…

In this 2-year study, the assumptions and methods of role theory were employed to guide the description and analysis of instructional leadership among secondary school principals. This paper reports selected findings from the first year's work--a focused ethnographic study of instructional leadership patterns in five secondary schools--based on…

This study investigated instructional leadership functions and school policy factors that affected implementation of instructional strategies presented in a research-based staff development program for secondary school mathematics teachers in school districts in the Chicago suburbs. The instructional leadership functions included the amount and…

This essay proposes a responsive research agenda to examine relationships between supervisory inquiry and practice on one hand, and teaching and learning on the other. The agenda first calls for policy-oriented research that examines the implications of state-mandated educational changes on supervisory practices and commensurate teaching and…

The purposes of the research reported in this paper are, first, to study the actions taken by school principals to facilitate a curriculum change in their schools and, second, to determine the relationship between those actions, the leadership style of the principal, and the extant situational variables. Data were collected by means of bimonthly…

Because leadership theories and recent research into principals' roles have only limited validity, practical utility, and comprehensiveness, this study undertakes a description of effective principals' behaviors and a coherent explanation of them. Long-term goals, factors affecting student learning, strategies for goal achievement, and structures…

Interviews conducted with 15 elementary school teachers and 5 principals in a southern California metropolitan district bring out the differing work orientations and incentives among teachers and administrators, and reveal how various principal-generated orientations and incentives affect teacher performance. The research shows that the work…

Socialization of the new principal is becoming an increasingly important issue calling for serious attention by practitioners, researchers, and educational policymakers. This paper attempts to contribute additional insight into the ways in which beginning school principals become socialized in their new school settings and the ways in which they…

Past research has correlated differential curriculum implementation outcomes at the classroom level with the actions of the key change facilitator at the school level: the principal. Accordingly, this paper reports the results of a study of three change facilitator styles among principals: responders, managers, and initiators. Working definitions…

Adjustment is one aspect of the elementary principal's relationship to work, as he or she both responds to the work environment and contributes to its construction. This study furthers research examining adjustment from the individual, organizational, and individual/job match perspectives by investigating adjustment patterns for 113 satisfied and…

The role of the principal as leader has been a subject of considerable debate and research in education. This study examines the extent of variation in leadership behavior and activities among urban high school principals. Data were collected through interviews with principals and teachers in national samples of urban comprehensive high schools…

Using nationally representative data generated by the normal, day-to-day operation of schools, this research tested the major conclusions drawn from case studies focusing on principal effectiveness. On the basis of detailed information regarding individual student characteristics and achievements, detailed characteristics of teachers and their…

This book is designed to help policymakers, educators, and researchers develop a deeper understanding of the issues of school restructuring and to give greater conceptual clarity to the terms of the current debate. The chapters of the book contain forum papers that are organized into two main parts. Following chapter 1, "Introduction: On Changing…

This paper reports on a research study designed, in part, to explore the expression of bureaucracy (or structural management) and culture (or symbolic management) in the work of eighteen elementary school principals in Louisiana. In addition, the study compares principals in nine of the schools categorized as "more effective" and nine…